A deep dive into the power and science of optimism that will change the way you think for good. THE BRIGHT SIDE is Sumit Paul-Choudhury’s acclaimed book on the psychology, philosophy and practice of optimism.
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What connects Ernest Shackleton’s Antarctic expedition with the chicken that crossed the road? Or James Baldwin’s campaign for civil rights with the development of AI? Or even geoengineering with George Bush’s ‘mission accomplished’?
The Bright Side makes a vital and transformative new argument: that optimism is not only the natural state of humanity, but an essential one. Without optimism we would never have survived the unpredictable – and often hostile – world we evolved into. Yet optimism is not reserved for times of extremity. Its benefits manifest throughout our everyday lives: our relationships, careers, bodies and minds. And it will play a critical role in overcoming the challenges of the twenty-first century.
In this book, Sumit-Paul Choudhury offers practical suggestions on what it really takes to be an optimist today and, in doing so, provides a powerful manifesto for hope and a much-needed new perspective on our prospects. He shows how, by embracing action, imagination and possibility, we can find a path to the bright side, even – perhaps especially – when the future seems dark.
Both realistic and revolutionary, The Bright Side is a guidebook for troubled times that will make you re-evaluate your habits and outlook.
THE BRIGHT SIDE is published by Canongate in the UK/RoW, Scribner in North America and Kjona in Germany. Translations into Mandarin, Arabic, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, Dutch and Romanian are in production.
Praise for THE BRIGHT SIDE
“A powerfully inspiring study of optimism that avoids farcical good cheer. [ … ] Sumit Paul-Choudhury comes down firmly on the side of optimism in this lively exploration of glass-half-full thinking and its relationship with social progress. [He] presents a fascinating and wide-ranging argument that is hopeful but never trite or self-satisfied … It is a perspective that will be sorely needed in 2025”
— Huw Green, clinical psychologist, reviewing for The Guardian
“I was left wondering how much humanity would change for the better if everyone read this book. Unlike the plethora of self-help publications full of their clichéd soundbites, Paul-Choudhury has written a truly inspirational and beautiful book with a powerful and timely message for today’s society”
— Jim Al-Khalili, Author And Broadcaster
“Sumit Paul-Choudhury transforms optimism from a soft-hearted notion into a hard-headed advantage. The Bright Side makes optimism rigorous, daring us to see it as a disciplined, effective way to tackle the world’s toughest challenges”
— Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Of Drive And The Power Of Regret
“I truly loved The Bright Side! It is both intelligent and erudite yet also accessible and warm. The range of examples and examples of pessimism pitfalls will be helpful to all”
— Cathy Rentzenbrink, Author Of The Last Act Of Love
“A BOOK WE DESPERATELY NEED RIGHT NOW … Sumit Paul-Choudhury musters powerful arguments from science, history, and psychology to remind us of what is hidden in plain sight—our proven ability to shape a future that promotes human thriving. This is science-based chicken soup for the soul. It will both nourish and empower you.”
— Robert Waldinger, M.D., bestselling coauthor of The Good Life: Lessons from the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness
“This book is a beacon of light in exploring how imagination about a better future, and the agency to create that future, can lift our sights and our spirits.”
– Andy Haldane, CEO of the RSA and former chief economist at the Bank of England
“An expansive tour de force. Paul-Choudhury’s own voice shines through – he is witty, empathetic and a beautiful writer … We’re born optimists, Paul-Choudhury argues; if you’re no longer one, this title will give you a way back – and a lot more besides”
— Helen Thomson, author of Unimaginable, reviewing for The Observer
“In The Bright Side Sumit Paul-Choudhury argues that optimism, though it may seem irrational at times and even ridiculous, is ‘central to the human psyche’….While the world can be bleak, it turns out that consciously adopting an optimistic philosophy can nudge us to take steps to make the world and its future—our own future included—less terrible…. Mr. Paul-Choudhury’s range of reference yields interesting details.”
— Laura Vanderkam, author of Tranquility by Tuesday, reviewing for The Wall Street Journal
“BRILLIANTLY SHOWS THE WAY OUT. Both personal and universal, interwoven with examples from literature, history and modern science, this book shows us how to find within us fierce imagination and determined hope, and create a better future.”
— Rowan Hooper, author of Superhuman and How to Spend a Trillion Dollars
“MAKES A COMPELLING CASE. Psychological science shows that optimism is up to us, an existential choice. The facts of our external world, however, do not compel optimism, and Paul-Choudhury in a masterful historical review finds that it is the optimists who change the external world for the better while the realists passively accept their lot. I went away from this book inspired and enriched.”
— Martin E.P. Seligman, bestselling author of Learned Optimism and Flourish
“A CHARMING AND GENEROUS INVITATION TO THE FUTURE…The Bright Side is a still, small voice of calm in a culture hijacked by apocalyptic thinking and regimented behavior.”
— Simon Ings, author of The Weight of Numbers
“MOVING AND INSIGHTFUL…This argument for optimism stands up against the cynical mood of the 21st century, challenging—and equipping—the reader to help create a better world.”
— Michael Brooks, author of the bestselling 13 Things That Don’t Make Sense
“A TONIC FOR OUR TIMES. Paul-Choudhury showed impressive courage after his young wife’s death, vowing to map the intellectual and psychological underpinnings of optimism. We are the beneficiaries of his tenacity. In lucid, lively, never highfalutin prose he brings onstage such characters as Odysseus, Oedipus, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, and Helen Keller, each of whom has a vital lesson to impart. The book’s conclusion: not only is optimism rational, it is a twenty-first century necessity.”
— Meredith Wadman, author of The Vaccine Race: Science, Politics, and the Human Costs of Defeating Disease
“A SALVIFIC, JOYOUS PAEAN TO ALL THAT’S POSSIBLE. Read this book. Don’t be the version of yourself that doesn’t: because the best possible version of you is almost certainly the one that picks it up. Peppered with the effortless wit—and profound curiosity—that only a true optimist can muster, Paul-Choudhury’s The Bright Side is a panoramic guide to why we should always hope that things can get better, even when it seems most likely they will not. It is just the book this world needs.”
— Thomas Moynihan, author of X-Risk: How Humanity Discovered Its Own Extinction
“A THRILLING AND GALVANIZING RIDE…The optimism Paul-Choudhury describes is not just for the self-help aisle—it is a societal engine for creating the best of all possible worlds. This book is nothing less than a set of operating instructions for a better future.”
— Sally Adee, author of We Are Electric
“A WHOLE NEW LENS THAT PROMISES TO TRANSFORM HOW WE NAVIGATE THE 21ST CENTURY. Many books on optimism take an individualist approach; The Bright Side is altogether more ambitious: this is a guide for civilization…wise about the lessons of the past, clear-sighted about the challenges of the present, and hopeful about the possibilities of tomorrow.”
— Richard Fisher, author of The Long View: Why We Need to Transform How the World Sees Time
“A SPELLBINDING TOUR DE FORCE. Paul-Choudhury has crafted an expansive and convincing argument for why building a better future demands that we believe in it first. An urgent call to arms to choosing change over doom, action over despair, optimism over hope.”
— Roberto Trotta, astrophysicist and author of Starborn
“DEFTLY MELDS SCIENCE, PHILOSOPHY, AND CULTURE to build a convincing case for optimism. I left this book feeling energized and empowered.”
— David Robson, author of The Expectation Effect: How Your Mindset Can Change Your World
“DAZZLING. Optimists believe problems can be solved—and we could sure use some optimism right now. Sumit Paul-Choudhury’s The Bright Side lights the way.”
— Gregg Easterbrook, author of The Progress Paradox